Batut: Ticks Peak in June, See a Doctor Within 24 Hours
Serbia's Batut Institute warns ticks are most active in June and shares concrete protection steps ahead of the outdoor season.
- The Batut Institute says ticks are most active in May and June, right as the outdoor season begins.
- Protect yourself with light clothing, long sleeves and trousers, closed shoes and a repellent.
- Check your skin every 3 to 4 hours and see a doctor within 24 hours of a bite.
- Never put ether, alcohol, petrol, a cigarette or oils on the bite site.
Planning your first proper trip into nature this June? Then here is the first thing worth knowing before you set off. Serbia’s Institute of Public Health “Dr Milan Jovanovic Batut” warns that ticks are at their peak right now, exactly when most of us head to meadows, forests and riverbanks.
Ticks are more than just a nuisance. They can carry a whole range of diseases, from Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis to Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, Q fever and rickettsioses. The good news is that most bites are easy to avoid once you know a few simple habits.
When are ticks most dangerous and where do they lurk?
Ticks are around from early spring to late autumn, but not every month is the same. The peak falls right at the start of summer, when humidity suits them and the grass and low vegetation grow thick.
“Ticks, which are present from early spring to late autumn, are most active in May and June”, the Batut Institute says.
You most often pick them up in tall grass, at the forest edge, in parks and on meadows. That is why a few practical habits make a real difference:
- wear light-coloured clothing with long sleeves and trousers, so a tick is easier to spot
- put on closed shoes, not sandals or flip-flops
- use a repellent on exposed skin
- stick to marked trails and avoid wading through dense brush
If you are bringing children or a pet along, the same rules apply to them, you just need to check them even more carefully.
What should I do if a tick bites me anyway?
First, do not panic. The key is to spot the tick early, so check your skin every 3 to 4 hours. Pay special attention to the spots where ticks like to hide: the groin, armpits, the back of the knees and behind the ears.
If you find a tick that has latched on, see a doctor within the first 24 hours. A professional will remove it the right way and decide whether further follow-up is needed. The one thing you should never do is try to “treat” it with home remedies.
The Batut Institute is clear on this:
“Do not apply any chemical agents to the bite site”, the experts warn.
In practice that means you must not put ether, alcohol, petrol, a lit cigarette, creams or volatile oils on the bite. Such methods can push the tick to inject more saliva into the wound, which only raises the risk of disease transmission.
The best protection is still the simplest one: the right clothing, a repellent, sticking to trails and a regular skin check after every outing. Those few minutes of caution are worth far more than later worry.
So, do you already check the weather and your gear before a trip, or will a tick skin check join your list this June?
